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CLT and I went to Mimosa last night for a late evening dinner. Eight o’clock on a Sunday night was not a busy time there, so we had the place to ourselves. Arriving, the service was fine, although our waitress forgot about us for a few minutes since we were alone in the restaurant. Other than that lapse, I think the service was friendly and prompt.

Mimosa has gone for a “P. F. Chang’s” style modernist decor, but not really hit the mark. The interior is a mixture of elements that just don’t quite mesh. The booths, tables, and chairs have clean lines and a dark red palette, but aren’t quite edgy enough to match the exposed industrial ceiling and HVAC. There’s three large fish tanks separating the dining space from the bar. But only one of the tanks actually had visible fish, and there wasn’t a real integration of the tanks into the overall decor. The overhead lighting was also a mix of regular light bulbs and compact fluorescents. While I support the use of compact fluorescents from an ecological view point, the management had decide to save a few extra bucks by not getting full-spectrum bulbs. This left us sitting at a table with a faint greenish cast from the light overhead. Greenish color cast is not what you want when ordering sushi!

CLT and I both ordered a sushi roll and a chicken entree. If you’ve eaten sushi, you know that the one thing for which you are absolutely dependent upon the chef is getting a sushi roll cut cleanly so you can pick up pieces with chopsticks. Sushi rolls are delicate creations, and they don’t last long if you have to tug on them to separate the pieces. While the texture and taste was acceptable, my roll wasn’t cut cleanly – blemishing the whole experience.

For the entrees, the taste and presentation were great. Unfortunately, the chicken in both our dishes had a weird spongy texture. I’m not sure what’s going on with the texture of their chicken. This was something I experienced when I ate there a few months ago as well. I decided to change things up and order fried rice instead of white rice this time, which also turned into a disappointment. The fried rice was utterly incapable of sticking together – thus immediately defeating any attempt to eat with chopsticks. CLT’s white rice seemed OK, although I didn’t try any myself to find out. We both decide to pass on dessert and call it a night.

So, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend Mimosa based on their hot entrees – at least with chicken. The sushi was acceptable even if the preparation wasn’t spot on. If I ever do return there, I’ll probably be trying a shrimp dish instead of chicken. Given that some other reviewers seem to think highly of Mimosa, maybe I’ve just caught them on bad nights. Or maybe food in Boston and New York has just spoiled me for restaurants in Winchester. At any rate, your mileage may vary.

Mimosa Fusion Asian Restaurant
202 Grocery Ave
Winchester, VA 22602
(540) 545-8482‎
http://mimosafusion.com/